Today, Wednesday, Sweden starts to get going in earnest after the holidays. And it's below freezing in most of the country, and downright freezing in the northern part of the country. This will also see electricity consumption rise to around 23,600 MW, the highest level so far this winter, according to Svenska kraftnät.
And it will be even higher next week, says Johan Sigvardsson, electricity analyst at electricity trading company Bixia.
Monday and Tuesday next week, the price of electricity may rise significantly as the wind also looks set to calm down.
The cold keeps its grip
Large parts of Europe are currently experiencing a real winter, and thus high electricity consumption. The cold is expected to last at least until January 20, according to longer-range forecasts.
Is there any risk of power outages?
No, but we import during certain hours, because it's cheaper to import fossil power, says Sigvardsson.
There is still some way to go until the consumption peaks of around 25,000-26,000 MW that Svenska kraftnät regards as more critical.
"No cow on the ice"
So there is no cow on the ice.
And if the price is high enough, the oil-fired Karlshamnsverket will be up and running.
"Pumping in a few hundred megawatts helps quite a bit in southern Sweden," says Sigvardsson.
Currently, all Swedish nuclear power is also running at full capacity.
It's been a long time since we had all our nuclear power running. It looks stable.
So far, gas prices on the continent have not risen noticeably, which is dampening electricity prices in Sweden, even though they remain elevated.
Olle Lindström/TT
Facts: Electricity price first week of 2026
TT
The electricity price so far this year (January 1-7) has been between 72 and 92 öre on average, most expensive in electricity area 4, southern Götaland, according to the electricity exchange Nord Pool.
This can be compared to the January 2025 price of between 24 and 76 öre per kilowatt-hour (kWh).
On top of the exchange prices, there is electricity tax, VAT, the electricity company's surcharge and an electricity network fee of well over one krona per kWh.
